Donald Eugene Parker
Agency patch
Correctional Officer

Donald Eugene Parker

Illness
End of Watch October 1, 2020
Age 73
Tour of Duty 9 yrs
The Vigil Panel 173 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Correctional Officer Donald Parker died after contracting COVID-19 during an outbreak among staff and inmates at the Neal Unit in Potter County, Texas.

Officer Parker had served with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for nine years and was assigned as a Food Service Manager.

COVID-19 and Law Enforcement

Correctional Officer Donald Eugene Parker died on October 1, 2020 of COVID-19 contracted in the line of duty. He was 73.

He is one of 884 officers honored here, and one of 55 at Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Correctional Institutions Division.

Beginning in early 2020, law enforcement officers across the country contracted COVID-19 in the course of their duties. While much of the nation sheltered at home, they kept answering calls, making arrests, transporting prisoners, and working face to face with the public. There was no distance to be had from the job.

Corrections officers were hit hardest. Confined facilities and large populations meant constant, close, unavoidable exposure.

Survivors

He is survived by two sons.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-TX-78F08E13
Stewardship
Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
Added to badge.nw
April 2, 2026
Last updated
July 23, 2026

Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.

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Tributes

The country locked its doors. You kept working.
Correctional Officer Parker gave the Texas Department of Criminal Justice 9 years.
Thank you for your service to the Huntsville community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Correctional Officer Parker.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Location Huntsville, TX
Platform Identity tdcjcidcorr.walker.tx.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch October 1, 2020
Tour of Duty 9 yrs
Age 73
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Illness
Cause Detail COVID19

Correctional Officer Donald Eugene Parker is one of 2,974 officers lost to illness connected to their service across the full record of this memorial — 9.1% of all 32,508 officers honored here.

In TX, 204 of 2,421 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 8.4% of this state's fallen. That is 0.7 percentage points below the national rate of 9.1%.

At Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Correctional Institutions Division, 55 of 124 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 44.4% of this agency's fallen.

Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Correctional Institutions Division
55
of 124 officers
44.4% Illness
TX — Statewide
204
of 2,421 officers
8.4% Illness
Nationwide
2,974
of 32,508 officers
9.1% Illness

National Cause Distribution

How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Donald Eugene Parker's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
17,623 (54.2%)
Accident
10,088 (31%)
Illness
2,974 (9.1%)
Cardiac
1,306 (4%)
Undetermined
260 (0.8%)
Suicide
256 (0.8%)
vehicular
1 (0%)

How Donald Eugene Parker Compares

Age at End of Watch
73
This officer
Avg for Illness: 47.8 years
Years of Service
9
This officer
Avg for Illness: 18.9 years

When Illness Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Donald Eugene Parker is highlighted in Oct.

Jan
294
Feb
198
Mar
185
Apr
226
May
201
Jun
181
Jul
217
Aug
281
Sep
291
Oct
376
Nov
239
Dec
285

Incident Location